The World Library & Information Congress

The World Library & Information Congress/ IFLA General Conference Qu้bec, Canada, August 10-15, 2008Call for Papers and Panelists
Management of Library Associations Section with Continuing Professional Development and Workplace Learning Section and Action for Development through Libraries Programme

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Session Theme: LEADERSHIP SKILLS AND ADVOCACY FOR LIBRARIES : BEST PRACTICES IN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION MANAGEMENT


This programme is a collaboration between the Management of Library Association Section (MLAS), the Continuing Professional Development and Workplace Learning Section (CPDWL) and the Action for Development through Libraries Programme (ALP).

GLOBAL LIBRARY ASSOCIATION DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM – GLAD was developed by the Management of Library Association Section (MLAS) and received the approval of IFLA Governing Board in 2006 as a strategic initiative.

The objective of the GLAD Programme is to help to develop a set of skills relating to Library Association Management in order to strengthen the pool of qualified personnel who will potentially manage Library Associations at the local level. This in turn will help to strengthen the pool of potential candidates from which IFLA can draw for leadership positions within the Association.

MLAS, CPDWL and ALP share the mission of the GLAD Programme : to strenghten the management of library associations in order to make associations stronger players in the development of libraries and thus in the development of societies in all parts of the world. This to be achieved through continuous training and development of information professionals.

The World Library & Information Congress/ IFLA General Conference takes place in Qu้bec, Canada, August 10-15, 2008. The overall conference theme is "Libraries without borders: Navigating towards global understanding". As part of the conference program the MLAS, CPDWL and ALP will host a one day session entitled “Leadership skills and advocacy for libraries : best practices in library association management” consisting of
Part 1: presentations and,
Part 2: interactive discussion focused on Library Association Management techniques and principles like leadership skills and advocacy for libraries.

The programme is envisioned as having presentations in the morning with invited speakers allocated 20 minutes presentation time after which there will be 10 minutes of discussion. The afternoon session will take the form of interactive round-table sessions in the afternoon devoted to discussion of problems and solutions.

LIS educators and practitioners are invited to submit proposals for presentations and roundtable sessions that provide practical information which will enhance the ability of participants to become successful Library Association Managers and Leaders. We plan to present best practices from each of the three IFLA regions of Africa, Latin America-Caribbian and Asia–Oceania where ALP has supported succesful projects or actions.

Proposals may focus on, but are not limited to:

best practices of working in the political arena and in advocacy

best practices of management of library associations

strategic planning

financial management and reporting

communication and presentation skills

business case writing

mentoring

general leadership skills targeted at all levels – beginners, intermediate, advanced, and executive rank

If interested, please send a one-page abstract on one of the topics mentioned above or any other topic which is in keeping with the objective of the workshop. Include a short biography on the author and a digital photo if available.

Your abstract must be submitted by 15 December 2007 to:
Sinikka Sipilae, MLAS Section
E-mail: sinikka.sipila@fla.fi and
Sylvia Piggott, CPDWL Section
E-mail: spiggott@sympatico.ca

The abstracts will be reviewed by members of MLAS and CPDWL standing committees and by the ALP Office. Successful applicants will be notified by end of February 2008.
Full papers will be due on 1 May 2008 to allow time for review of papers and translations. Papers should not be longer than 20 pages. A maximum of 20 minutes will be allowed for a presentation or summary of the paper during the Sections program in the Conference.

All the abstracts must be in English. Papers can be presented during the Conference in any IFLA working language (English, French, German, Russian, Spanish), but the interactive round-table sessions in the afternoon should be in English only.
Information on the author should include name, contact details, affiliations (home institution, professional memberships, etc) and a brief statement of experience and expertise related to the themes of this conference program.

Please note that the expenses of attending the Quebec conference will be the responsibility of the author(s)/presenter(s) of accepted papers.
Exception : ALP would support one participant from each of the three IFLA regions presenting an accepted paper. Please contact ALP re this offer at ifla.alp@ub.uu.se.